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The Western Wall

Submitted by RaoulTGIF on Wed, 08/28/2013 - 15:55

Just got back
from an All-You-Can-Eat Korean dinner with the family. Am
I stuffed! It was a real treat for me because I haven't been eating
beef and pork due to dietary precautions. But we need to celebrate
every now and then. One thing about Los Angeles --- it's such an
ethnic melting pot that we have gastronomical representations of
every culture in the world. And I think I've sampled quite a few
of them. Perhaps the worst food I ever tasted was pickled grasshopper.
A friend had a jar of those black fermented exoskeletal insects
floating in some black garlicky soup and I watched her chewing these
with utter delight. I was foolish enough to ask her if I could taste
it. I held this slimy morsel in my fingers. It smelled awful but
my smiling friend said I should taste it and so I bit off its head.
Well, it tasted worse than it smelled. Ooohhh! I let that bite swirl
in my mouth for a minute ... mustering the courage to gulp it down
but I feared it would contaminate yesterday's dinner so I gagged
and spit it out. Word of advice: If you ever see a jar of insects,
just remember Moses would rather starve than eat those things.

Sent by Naomi of North Hollywood, CA

Forgive your enemy, but remember the
@ $^!&'s name.

Thanks
to this week's winners:
Naomi of N Hollywood, Joji of Antipolo, Sang of Delaware, Tom
of Pasadena, Thomas of Pasadena, Rey of Simi Valley, Rick of Chino
Hills, Charlie of New York.

Western Wall Contributed by Joji of Anipolo. Philippines

A female CNN journalist
heard about a very elderly Jewish man who had been going to the Western
Wall to pray, twice a day, every day, for a long, long time.

So she went to check
it out. She went to the Western Wall and there he was, walking slowly
up to the holy site.

She watched him pray and after about 45 minutes, when he turned to leave,
using a cane and moving very slowly, she approached him for an interview.

"Pardon me, sir,
I'm Rebecca Smith from CNN. What's your name?

"Morris Feinberg,"
he replied.

"Sir, how long
have you been coming to the Western Wall and praying?"

"For about 60
years."

"60 years! That's amazing! What do you pray for?"

"I
pray for peace between the Christians, Jews and the Muslims."

"I
pray for all the wars and all the hatred to stop."

"I
pray for all our children to grow up safely as responsible adults and
to love their fellow man."

"I
pray that politicians tell us the truth and put the interests of the people
ahead of their own interests."

The
journalist then asked, "How do you feel after doing this for 60 years?"

"Like
I'mtalking to a wall."

The Hotel ClerkInspirational story contributed by Sang of Delaware

One stormy night many years ago, an elderly man and his wife entered the lobby of a small hotel in Philadelphia, USA. Trying to get out of the rain, the couple approached the front desk hoping to get some shelter for the night.

"Could you possibly give us a room here?" - the husband asked.

The clerk, a friendly man with a winning smile, looked at the couple
and explained that there were three conventions in town. "All
of our rooms are taken," the clerk said. "But I can't
send a nice couple like you out into the rain at one o'clock in
the morning. Would you perhaps be willing to sleep in my room? It's
not exactly a suite, but it will be good enough to make you folks
comfortable for the night."

When the couple
declined, the young man pressed on. "Don't worry about me,
I'll make out just fine," the clerk told them. So the couple
agreed.

As he paid his
bill the next morning, the elderly man said to the clerk, "You
are the kind of manager who should be the boss of the best hotel.
Maybe someday I'll build one for you."

The clerk looked
at them and smiled. The three of them had a good laugh. As they
drove away, the elderly couple agreed that the helpful clerk was
indeed exceptional, as finding people who are both friendly and
helpful isn't easy.

Two years passed.
The clerk had almost forgotten the incident when he received a letter
from the old man. It recalled that stormy night and enclosed a round-trip
ticket to New York, asking the young man to pay them a visit.

The old man
met him in New York, and led him to the corner of Fifth Avenue and
34th Street. He then pointed to a great new building there, a pale
reddish stone, with turrets and watchtowers thrusting up to the
sky.

"That,"
said the older man, "is the hotel I have just built for you
to manage."

"You must
be joking." - the young man said.

"I can
assure you I am not." - said the older man, a sly smile playing
around his mouth.

The older man's
name was William Waldorf-Aster, and that magnificent structure was
the original Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. The young clerk who became its
first manager was George C. Boldt. This young clerk never foresaw
the turn of events that would lead him to become the manager of
one of the world's most glamorous hotels.

The audio's not that great but the visual is incredible. My first
thought was he used a ... ah you go ahead and watch!

Vodka Rules! Contributed
by Tom of Pasadena, CA

Asian drivers (especially in Alhambra, CA where insurance rates
go up just because you live there) are notorious but they are nothing
compared to these drivers in Russia. It's not just the vodka but
also the slippery winter terrain. Really scary.

InterSpecies
Friendships Contributed
by Rey of Simi Valley, CA

Seems animals get along better than some humans. My question is
this: Have they always been like this or are we just seeing more
of them because of video-sharing technology? Remember the DIsney
movie "Fox and the Hound?" You've come a long way baby!

Senior
Greeter Contributed
by Rick of Chino Hills, CA

This
gentleman is an inspiration to us all. We should hear more stories
like this.

Identity
Theft DemoContributed
by Thomas of Pasadena, CA

Thomas
is a security expert so he knows what this subject is all about.
It's pretty scary how vulnerable we all are.

Deck
of CardsContributed
by Charlie of New York

We associate cards with gambling. But did you ever realize how much
Biblical symbolism you can draw out of them as well? Fascinating
video.